1. PURPOSE OF PROCEDURE
1.1 To ensure that guidelines exist for the appropriate use of ‘all staff emails’ and to consider alternative forms of communication.
1.2 Staff will be restricted from sending ‘all staff emails’. Some exceptions will apply at the discretion of the Communications and eHealth Departments
2. WHERE THE PROCEDURE APPLIES
2.1 This procedure applies to all NHS Fife members with access to email. The NHS Fife Communications Department co-ordinate the distribution of any ‘all staff email’ requests.
3. RESPONSIBILITY
3.1 It is the responsibility of the Communications and eHealth Departments to police and audit the use of ‘all staff emails’.
4. OPERATIONAL SYSTEM
Use of All Staff Email System
4.1 Unless the message has an urgent and operational need, all staff emails will be distributed as part of the ‘Dispatch’ email bulletin. Messages may be sent individually by the Communications Department or the eHealth Service Desk where operational needs require it.
Requesting a news item to be included in the ‘Dispatch’ email bulletin
4.2 Any intranet editor can post a news item on the intranet for inclusion within ‘Dispatch’. Requests in the first instance should be made to a department or services local intranet editor. A list of editors is available on the staff intranet. Where this is not possible, requests should be made as the ‘Requesting an All Staff Email to be sent from communications’ process below.
Editors can follow the ‘News Items – Quick Steps for Online Communications’ guide for details on publishing news items on the intranet and ‘Dispatch’
Requesting an All Staff Email to be sent from communications
4.3 Requests may be made by members of NHS Fife staff see flowchart in appendix 2.
4.4 Communications Department staff dealing with ‘all staff email’ requests will be responsible for dealing with enquiries within 1 working day. All requests should be emailed to: fife.communications@nhs.net and will be dealt with by the Communications Department.
The request should contain full details of the message to be sent (The Communications Department are unable to write emails for users) and the intended distribution list (see appendix 2).
4.5 The appropriateness of the ‘all staff email’ will be determined by a member of the Communications Department.
4.6 Email lists (appendix 2) for sections of the organisation will be used to ensure any email sent through this system will be targeted to specific areas if needed.
4.7 If an email is deemed inappropriate to send to all staff, alternative solutions will be given, such as the upload of information to the NHS Fife intranet system and inclusion in ‘Dispatch’.
4.8 Attachments will be uploaded to the intranet, and a link provided within the email. All messages with attachments must have accompanying text explaining the attachment. Emails with only an attachment (such as flyers and posters with no accompanying message) will not be sent.
4.9 The Communications Department reserves the right to copy an attachment into the body of an email where doing so will not affect the content of message,
Other users of all staff emails
4.10 A number of users out with the Communications Department have rights to send all staff emails to meet an operational need.
4.11 These users should only use any assigned rights for sending emails when there is an identified operational need that cannot be met by other communication channels.
4.12 Users should comply with any guidance contained within this procedure.
5. RISK MANAGEMENT
5.1 This procedure must be reviewed annually under the authority of the Communications Manager. All associated procedures and processes linked to this procedure will be subject to an ongoing development and review programme.
6. RELATED DOCUMENTS
Appendix 1: Flow chart of ‘all staff emails’ process
Appendix 2: Email Lists
Appendix 3: What we won’t send
GP/O2 - Online Communications Policy